So I've finally got
everything I need to get this bike on the road. Freewheel is here, new chain, cables, housing, shifters, brakes, levers...the works.
I got down to taking care of the rust on the top tube cable guides. Turns out that besides the nasty lookin front guide, there is surface rust bubbling under the paint around all 3 guides.
I went at em with a set of files and filed off the bubbling paint and surface rust down to shiny metal. I had to file down about a 3mm radius around each guide to root out all the cancer.
After filing I masked everything off and sprayed them with rustoleum Rust Converter primer to make sure the problem doesn't come back immediately, then top coat with 3 or 4 coats of the closest match Rustoleum Blue I could get.
The results aren't bad...from 10 feet away its a nearly perfect match, closer and you notice my current problem. The areas I repainted are now built up higher than the rest of the paint.
How Can I fix/cover that up?
some shots of the whole thing...still have some more parts to put on but whats on there is staying. Mavic Open 4CD rims on Dura-Ace 7401 hubs (freewheel, not freehub), SR Crankset, SR Handlebars, fricken sweet SR Stem, SR Laprade seatpost, Suntour friction Barcons, 2nd Gen Suntour Superbe RD, new Tektro calipers, new Cane Creek SCR5 Levers, new Tange Levin Headset (Standard size w/27.0 fork crown race)
Waiting to go on is a matching Superbe FD, new 7 Speed HG Freewheel, and newish SR Chainrings to replace that single black one.
I'm gonna have it accented with Yellow....Tires are black with a yellow stripe down the middle, Cable Housing waiting to be cut is Yellow, Toe Straps are Yellow, bar Wrap is yellow Cork. I hope I didn't overdo it with the yellow...
I'll probably build the bike up over the next day or two minus the rear brake line...just gotta wait for the paint on the Cable Guides to cure (I'll give it til friday)
Any recommendations on what to do to clean up around the edges of where I painted? Polishing Compound around the edges to smooth it down? Wet Sanding?
Should I just make a decal with a cutout for the guide in the center to cover it?